Tori could only blink at him for a moment. Yes, he was definitely Cassie’s twin brother. Their manner of talking was similar, and so were their excited mannerisms.
“Would-would you like to sit down?” Tori offered, motioning toward the arrangement of sofa and chairs in the parlor-like area.
“Thanks,” Cameron said. He led the way over to the sofa and flopped down, his long limbs instantly relaxing. Tori chose the chair closest to him and sat with his hands neatly folded in his lap. “I promise I won’t stay long. You’ve got to be exhausted after everything that has happened. More importantly, I wanted to thank you again for saving my sister’s life.”
“Oh, yes. Well, it was nothing really. I’m sure she would have done the same for me.”
“Maybe so, but I want you to know that I truly appreciate the risk you took and your quick thinking. Alric will say things more official as the king, but I wanted to come to you as Cassie’s brother. Thank you.” Cameron placed his hand on the arm of Tori’s chair and leaned in a little closer. Unshed tears glistened in his large eyes behind black-rimmed glasses, and he swallowed hard. “I don’t know what I would do if I lost her. She’s been my best friend my entire life. Losing her would mean losing a big chunk of my heart. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Cassie is amazing, and the world would definitely be a dark place without her around,” Tori replied with a smile. Embarrassment burned his cheeks. He didn’t know what to say to Cameron’s kind words. No one had ever thanked him for his spells or actions, not like this.
Cameron took a deep breath and released it in a rush. “It would definitely be more boring without her around.” He paused and smiled to himself before shaking his head, as if pushing away whatever thought had crossed his mind. “The other reason I stopped by was to say that if you’ve got any questions, please feel free to ask me anything. You’ve been surrounded by dragons for a few days now, and Cassie—god love her—isn’t always the best source. If you’ve got any questions about living here or mage things or just anything in general, like when’s the best time to raid the kitchen for snacks, I’m happy to help.”
“Actually…” Tori paused and rubbed his sweaty palms on his knees. He couldn’t believe he was going to ask this, but then Cassie had been so easy to talk to. Her brother seemed the same. “What’s it like learning magic here? I mean, other than just being hard.”
Cameron shoved a hand through his hair, and his handsome face bunched up a little as he thought. “It’s not been as hard as I thought it would be. Sure, there are some spells like that stupid translation spell that are difficult, but in general it’s been really enjoyable. Lisette is an amazing and patient teacher. She really listens to you and has a great way of explaining things so it clicks in your brain. Keep in mind that she’s teaching my seventy-something grandmother how to do magic. You’re going to be just fine.”
Tori nodded. He wasn’t sure if that helped or not. It was nice to think that Lisette was a patient teacher, and she seemed to have confidence in his ability already. He’d managed to fight off the Jaeggi and mix the salve that helped save Cassie.
A hand landed on his shoulder, and he looked up to see Cameron’s kind smile. “Don’t worry about it. You’ve got this. Cassie and I talked on the phone last night. She says you’re amazing. The big question is whether you think you can tolerate living here with us.” The mage winked and pushed to his feet. “But it’s best to figure that out after a good night’s sleep.”
Tori nodded and walked with Cameron back to his door. “And the snack thing?”
Cameron flashed him the biggest grin. “Best time is one hour after any meal. All the dragons are still stuffed with food and moving slower. After lunch, many even like to take naps. It’s really kind of cute. But don’t go anywhere near the kitchen two hours before a meal, or you’ll be snapped at and roped into scrubbing pots or peeling potatoes.”
Tori’s head fell back as a loud bark of laughter jumped from him. He couldn’t believe how easy it was to laugh around Cameron. Mischief sparkled in the mage’s eyes. There was no doubt that the consort had taken advantage of certain sleeping dragons one way or another.
With a final wink, the mage wandered down the hall, humming a happy little tune to himself, probably off to find his mate.
Yeah, Burkhard Castle was proving to be an interesting place.
Tori’s first full day in the castle started with a critical meeting, one he was more than a little nervous about. Baldewin kept assuring him it was just a conversation, to not be worried about formalities, but since he was meeting with both the king of the Fire Dragons and the head mage, Tori would be nervous, thank you very much.
They sat in King Alric’s office, situated in the chairs and couch. Baldewin kept close to him, and Tori was ridiculously reassured by that. He sat at the edge of his seat, not able to relax into it with King Alric directly across from him.
He truly was a handsome man, even more so in person than the picture Tori had seen of him. Tori could see why Cameron would take one look and fall for the dragon king. And Lisette looked ageless and graceful, like a movie star sliding into her golden years. Tori was ever so glad now that Baldewin had bought him new clothes. Meeting these two in the ratty jeans and pull-over shirt he normally wore would have been, just, no.
“Thank you for meeting with us like this,” Alric said to him sincerely. “I know there’s much about our clan that you want to experience and take in. I don’t mean to distract you from that. I just have many questions about the Jaeggi, as you’re the first trained mage to have interacted with them one-on-one. I feel that your experience is invaluable.”
“I’m happy to help however I can,” he answered with a faint smile. “It feels strange, is all. I grew up hearing that the Jaeggi were friends and allies. I’m not sure how the tables were turned so neatly that I now fear them as enemies.”
“Yes, it’s likely a very strange thing for you. Much as it was for us, before the Dragon War started.”
Oh. Oh, come to think of it, that would have been true. The dragon clans and the Jaeggi had been friends and allies then, too, before Kaiser Jaeggi betrayed them. That perspective flipped his mind even further, and he couldn’t help but ponder it for a moment. Perhaps these dragons could empathize with him far better than he first assumed.
“Let us start from the beginning,” Lisette suggested, her voice smooth except for a slight, rough burr. “The first time you encountered the Jaeggi in Helsinki.”
“Yeah, that was a shi—uh”—Do not swear in front of royalty. Bad mouth—“crazy situation from start to finish. I didn’t know to be wary of them.”
“Sorry,” Baldewin sighed.
Tori knocked a shoulder against his, flashing him a smile. He was glad they were on the couch together so he could do that. “I’ve forgiven you already. But yeah, I just walked right up to them on the metro, as I didn’t know any better. I could see from their auras that they had magic, and I needed magical supplies but wasn’t sure where in the city to go. It’s not like you can just Google those stores.”